Jim Bell Beasley Real Estate plays a little game of House Hunters with Andy Medici for Washington Business Journal

(MediaQuire) – Washington, DC – Jim Bell Beasley Real Estate Founder plays a little game of House Hunters for “where will the Obamas move” with Andy Medici for Washington Business Journal.

When President Barack Obama‘s second term ends on Jan. 20, 2017, he and first lady Michelle Obama will likely do what few presidents have done — stay in Washington, D.C.

While their oldest daughter, Malia, now a senior in high school, will have graduated by then and, we presume, be enjoying her freshman year in college somewhere, their youngest daughter, Sasha, will still be a sophomore at Sidwell Friends School.

Soon President Obama could just be another D.C. resident and next-door neighbor –

As a former president, Obama and his family will have more unique requirements than the average house-hunting family, including stringent security and privacy issues. Let’s first assume they want to be relatively close to Sidwell, on upper Wisconsin Avenue in Northwest. (After all, the proud parents will want to make sure they can get to school in time for activities after a hard day’s work as the former leader of the free world.)

Jim Bell, founder and principal broker at luxury property firm Beasley Real Estate, agreed to lend his real estate bona fides to our little game of “House Hunters.” (BTW, wouldn’t it be great to see Michelle on an episode of the hit HGTV show? We’d love to see her laying claim to the walk-in closet over Barack — but hey, we know they’re busy people.)

Bell said the Obama family will probably have to look in the $5 million to $7 million price range for a house meeting their requirements. Fortunately, cost shouldn’t be much of a factor for the former POTUS. Obama is worth between $2 million and $7 million, according to filings he made in May. And his earning potential will only go up after he leaves office (see speaking fees, former presidents.)

When Bill Clinton left office in 2001, he and Hillary Clinton bought two houses — one in New York, where Hillary was the new senator, and one in the pricey Observatory Circle neighborhood in Northwest. They paid $2.85 million at the time for the 5,500-square-foot home at the end of a cul-de-sac. Real estate company Zillow currently values the property at around $5.9 million.

Bell said the Obamas will need a larger house relatively isolated and far away from buildings overlooking the property — so most of the leafy upper Northwest D.C. neighborhoods should fit the bill. The Secret Service, Bell notes, has already thoroughly vetted Kalorama and Georgetown for other high-profile residents, including former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.

“I don’t think it’s too much of a security concern as much as where they are going to be the most comfortable,” Bell said. “The Secret Service is really flexible — they can go anywhere.”

Jim Bell Founder of Beasley Real Estate – evolved out of years of reflection on creating a different kind of real estate firm: one that hires the best agents, sells the best properties and is solely focused on achieving the best results for each and every client. No other firm operates using the “client first, brand second” model. We believe it’s the best approach. To learn more about Beasley Real Estate and its agents, visit www.BeasleyRE.com.